Ireland votes to legalise abortion

The Irish electorate has called for a wave of change by voting by a landslide to legalise abortion in the country.

A large number of Irish went to the ballot box to abolish the eighth amendment to the Irish constitution which gives equal legal status to the lives of a foetus and the women carrying it.

With a two-thirds majority of ‘yes,’ the country has enabled the government in Dublin to introduce abortion in the Irish health service up to 12 weeks into pregnancy.

According to The Guardian, Orla O’Connor, the co-director of the Together for Yes campaign, said it was “a monumental day for women in Ireland”, calling the result “a rejection of an Ireland that treats women as second-class citizens”.

Prime Minister Leo Varadkar has already announced that the introduction of the legal terminations will be officialised by the end of the year.

According to the BBC, Mr Varadkar told crowds at Dublin Castle the result showed the Irish public “trust and respect women to make their own decision and choices.”

He added: “It’s also a day when we say no more. No more to doctors telling their patients there’s nothing can be done for them in their own country, no more lonely journeys across the Irish Sea, no more stigma as the veil of secrecy is lifted and no more isolation as the burden of shame is gone.”